Human Resource Community

Regarding the accumulation of privilege leaves for employees who would be retiring within the current and succeeding fiscal years, Air India recently updated its policy. The airline, which is a part of the Tata group, first modified its privilege leave policy in March to better reflect the state of the market. All employees were only permitted to accumulate 60 days of privilege leaves in a single fiscal year starting on April 1 in accordance with the updated policy. However, Campbell Wilson, CEO and managing director of Air India, proposed a relaxation for those who have expressed worries about approaching retirement. He noted that the airline had previously resolved that any privilege leaves lasting longer than 60 days would be forfeited in a mail to the employees. However, after speaking with external tax authorities, Air India was able to come to an arrangement to postpone the redemption of luxury leaves for individuals who will be retiring in the following two fiscal years (FY 2023–24 and 2024–25) for more than 60 days. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, they were unable to ensure the same ability for employees retiring beyond this time. Employees who are close to reaching superannuation can benefit from this decision because it will give them better retirement benefits. With the relaxation, eligible staff members can now take advantage of the tax exemption on leave encashments up to Rs 25 lakh during retirement. In the meanwhile, Air India is actively implementing its “Vihaan.AI” five-year transformation strategy. Campbell Wilson and other members of the management and Vihaan project teams will be visiting various cities around the nation in the upcoming months to interact with employees in person.

Infosys, a global leader in IT services, is collaborating with Adobe to improve digital skills through Infosys Springboard, its online learning platform. As part of Infosys’ Tech for Good initiative, this collaborative project intends to produce over 10,000 new globally certified Adobe experts by 2025. By granting free access to Adobe’s cutting-edge digital learning materials, the company will help with reskilling and closing the skills gap. Aspiring professionals and lifelong learners can use Adobe’s curriculum and explore their interests. While this partnership intends to develop a pool of knowledgeable and aspirational individuals, it also makes sure corporate learning is accessible on all devices. According to Anil Chakravarthy, president of Adobe’s digital experience business, companies must put a priority on maintaining the preparedness and success of their most valuable asset, their own employees, in order to flourish in the modern digital economy. In addition, he said, “Scalable training can help bridge the tech talent gap, and our collaboration with the company will empower the future workforce to upskill their digital proficiencies using Infosys Springboard.” According to Rajesh Varrier, EVP, head of Infosys’ Americas and global digital experience, “Infosys Springboard is designed to empower people, communities, and society with skills to be successful in the 21st century. Together with Adobe, it will provide free access to Adobe’s training program to develop digital competence at scale, create a skilled workforce and enhance employability”. By 2025, Infosys hopes to have more than 10 million Indians with digital skills through its Infosys Springboard program.  

Apple has notably been absent from the generative AI (GenAI) arena, despite Microsoft and Google making some significant advancements in the AI field. As an indication that it intends to make a significant entry into the AI market, Apple has recently began employing top AI developers and GenAI specialists. Apple products will consequently face greater competition. In order to improve its voice assistant technology, the company has decided to hire 176 people with a focus on machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI). 68 of these posts have been given to the Siri department. Furthermore, 46 posts would be devoted to macOS, while 52 will be focused on incorporating AI into iOS. It’s important to note that a number of roles will call for proficiency across various products, underscoring Apple’s dedication to smoothly integrating AI across its whole ecosystem and delivering a top-notch user experience. To prevent critical data leaks, Apple previously forbade its employees from using ChatGPT and other chatbots. The company said that its deliberate and intelligent approach to AI prioritises consumer transparency. While augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) will be the main topics of Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference on June 5, there is anticipation that the company may also reveal new breakthroughs in artificial intelligence (AI). Apple’s strategic decision to strengthen its AI skills can have a significant impact on the future of AR/VR because AI is becoming more and more integrated with these technologies.

Starting this week, Meta is anticipated to let go of about 6,000 workers. The company already laid off 11,000 workers in November and announced the termination of another 10,000 workers in March 2023. As Facebook’s parent company, Meta has already laid off 4,000 employees, leaving 6,000 more people affected by the layoffs anticipated for May of this year. The economic crisis and Meta’s slow expansion, which has led to a decline in revenue growth, have been cited as the main causes of the layoffs. The company previously admitted in an email that it over hired recently to satisfy business demands. According to media sources, Meta officials are preparing to issue a statement to staff members outlining the timeline for the layoff process and the teams that would be impacted. A notice of the upcoming layoffs will be sent to the affected employees through email. In addition, the company is anticipated to offer compensation comparable to that which was given to workers who were previously laid off. One could wonder why Meta is laying off such a large number of people. Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has already given justifications for this decision. The economic slowdown and Meta’s slow expansion are two factors that have contributed to the decline in revenue growth. The business stated in an email that it had recently over hired in order to satisfy business demands. However, Meta is currently reducing its workforce to solve these issues due to the current difficulties of poor growth and income struggles. According to Meta’s CTO, Andrew Bosworth, there are no scheduled layoffs at the company. He highlighted that the company would carry on with a focus on expansion and building. Bosworth admitted that unforeseen events like a drop in sales, a downturn in the economy, or unanticipated cost hikes might have an effect on the company’s future. He underlined how difficult it is to forecast such events and how uncertain the future is. The company has also praised the staff for their professionalism and resiliency in spite of the difficult circumstances, given the uncertain atmosphere.

Information and technology company Wipro disclosed through an exchange filing on May 17 that it had granted eligible employees stock options for roughly 3,98,733 shares. In accordance with the ADS Restricted Stock Unit Plan of 2004 and the Restricted Stock Unit Plan of 2007, 3,96,893 shares were distributed. In order to recognise employees’ accomplishments and increase their ownership, Wipro’s rival software giant Infosys previously distributed more than 5.11 lakh equity shares to its major contributors. Additionally, the company gave promotions and bonuses to all bands of employees throughout the last six months. The tech giant also increased variable pay to 80.25% in the fourth quarter and to 87% in the third and 100% in the second. The tech company also updated its portal and included new incentives, rewards, and R&R programmes to better handle actual on-the-ground activities and to offer help to the employees.

According to an internal email sent by Microsoft Corp. CEO Satya Nadella, the company will not be increasing full-time staff salaries this year and will also be cutting back on its budget for incentives and stock awards. A request for comment from Reuters received no immediate response from the tech giant. The report quoted Nadella as stating, “Last year, we made a significant investment in compensation driven by market conditions and company performance, nearly doubling our global merit budget…this year, the economic conditions are very different across many dimensions.” Microsoft stated in January that it would lay off 10,000 employees, adding to the tens of thousands of layoffs that had already been reported throughout the IT sector as it struggles with slowing revenue growth in an uncertain economy. Microsoft has now dedicated its whole attention to generative AI, an area that the business community considers to be an advantage. Microsoft has been integrating artificial intelligence technology into its Office products and Bing search engine in partnership with OpenAI, the company that created ChatGPT and has also gotten billions of dollars in funding from Microsoft. Source: Reuters

At the soon-to-be-opened Cognizant Google Cloud AI University, 25,000 Cognizant employees will receive training on Google Cloud AI technology. According to a statement from Cognizant, the institution would provide a range of courses, including basic AI introduction courses, advanced courses on Google Cloud’s products, and particular AI use cases. Tuesday saw the extension of the relationship between Cognizant and Google Cloud, which will help organisations all over the world embrace artificial intelligence (AI) faster. Cognizant will also establish new Google Cloud AI Innovation Centres in Bengaluru, London, and San Francisco as part of this development. These innovation hubs would bring together techies, cloud specialists from both firms, clients, and university students to enable cooperation. According to Ravi Kumar, CEO of New Jersey-based Cognizant, “By expanding our long-standing alliance with Google Cloud to leverage our existing technology capabilities, upskill our talent, and deliver advanced technologies to our clients, Cognizant will play a critical role in supporting the global shift to responsible AI use.” According to Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, “Generative AI has the potential to create significant business value by streamlining how we work, creating new consumer experiences, helping people better utilize data, and much more.”

According to a recent Supreme Court decision, an individual cannot be denied pension benefits just because their employer made incorrect deductions. Calcutta State Transport Corporation and others’ appeal was denied by the bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Rajesh Bindal. The appeal was filed in opposition to the High Court’s March 5, 2021 division bench judgement ordering the employer to release Ashit Chakraborty and others’ pension benefits. The company asserted in its appeal that the employee got notifications concerning typical withdrawals from his pay for the contributory provident fund. The employee did not object to these deductions at the time though. Only after his retirement did the problem come up. The company felt that he should not be qualified to receive benefits from the pension scheme in light of these facts. The employee responded to the appeal by stating that since he had decided to enrol in a pension scheme, it was the employer’s duty to correctly calculate his pay and make the necessary deductions for the various categories. Employee shouldn’t be punished or made to suffer as a result of a mistake the company made in this process. In agreement with the employee’s claim, the court rejected the corporation’s defence that other employees in same situations would also be eligible for similar treatment. The court reasoned that this would not preclude it from providing the employee the remedy he is entitled to. The judgement further noted that his rightful claim for a pension cannot be denied because certain improper deductions from his pay were made and he was classified as a member in the CPF scheme.  

The crisis-hit Go First was directed by the aviation regulator, the DGCA, to immediately cease all direct and indirect ticket sales till further orders. The airline operator has been required to respond within 15 days of receiving the notice, and a decision will be made about the continuation of their Air Operators Certificate (AOC) based on the response they provide. GoFirst has also been instructed to stop directly or indirectly booking and selling tickets with immediate effect and until further orders. According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), “Go First has issued a show cause notice to Go Airlines (India) Limited (Go First) under the relevant provisions of the Aircraft Rules, 1937, for their failure to continue the operation of the service in a safe, efficient, and reliable manner in light of the sudden cancellation of flights and initiation of corporate insolvency resolution process under IBC by Go Airlines (India) Limited.” Earlier, the airline announced that it will stop selling tickets until May 15 and postpone all flights until May 12. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which has reserved its order, has received a plea for voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings from the carrier. According to the source, the airline has been told to halt directly or indirectly booking and selling tickets with immediate effect and until further orders. A decision about the continuation of the airline’s Air Operators Certificate (AOC) would be made based on the airline’s response, which must be provided within 15 days of receiving the show cause notice, the source stated.

Shopify has announced that it will be selling the majority of its logistics operations to the supply-chain technology company Flexport, which will result in a 20% reduction in employment. Over 2000 workers at the company are thought to be impacted by the decision. The company will now be smaller as Flexport will shortly purchase their logistics division, according to a note from Tobi Lütke, CEO of Shopify, to shareholders and workers. As a result, some of Shopify’s staff would be leaving that day. Additionally, he acknowledged that this was a challenging choice and that he was aware of the terrible impact it would have on certain people. A severance package consisting of at least 16 weeks of compensation as well as an additional week for each year of service at Shopify will be provided to affected employees. According to the memo, they will also continue to get medical benefits, have access to employee support programs, and receive outplacement services during this time. Furthermore, impacted employees will be able to keep the furniture given by the company. The affected employees have been requested by the company to return their work laptops as it is legally required to do so, but doing so will enable them to purchase a new one. All affected employees will also continue to enjoy free access to Shopify’s advanced plan, which will support their future entrepreneurial endeavours. Shopify made job cuts last year throughout the month of July. A total of 10% of the company’s employees were let go, affecting almost 1,000 workers across various industries.